


Freedom's Price

by bladespark



Category: Hades (Video Game 2018)
Genre: Captivity, M/M, Part of bladespark's main Hades universe, Rough Oral Sex, Sexual Coercion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-12
Updated: 2021-02-12
Packaged: 2021-03-18 08:33:09
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,036
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29365545
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bladespark/pseuds/bladespark
Summary: Sisyphus once tricked Death into the chains meant to bind the former king. That story, and how Ares, upset that men no longer died in battle, found and freed him, have become well known.  Unknown to any but the two involved is the price the god of war demanded for Thanatos' freedom.
Relationships: Ares/Thanatos (Hades Video Game)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 56





	Freedom's Price

**Author's Note:**

> Mind the tags. If you want loving, fluffy ThanAres, skip this one.

“I am a complete and utter idiot,” muttered Thanatos into the empty air of Tartarus. At least it was empty. At least there was nobody else here to witness his humiliating predicament. Though of course that meant there was nobody else here to help him out of it, either.

He shifted, the pressure on his knees painful where his greaves were digging into them. The faint clank of the chain about his neck, keeping his back bent, was just one more reminder of the mess he was in. The second chain binding his hands behind his back and then to the floor made it nearly impossible to move. Finding a more comfortable position seemed unlikely, unless he wanted to give up and lie flat on the ground. Some stubborn scrap of pride kept him as upright as he could be, but he would probably give in eventually.

How long had he been chained here? How long since King Sisyphus of Ephyra had left?

How long had souls above gone unreaped?

Thanatos sighed heavily. He was not only an idiot, he was a failure. He had one task, and right now he couldn’t perform it. Because of his own foolish trust, because of his own pathetic desire to find someone he could call friend. When Sisyphus had spoken so kindly, so curiously to him, without the fear and abhorrence he was so accustomed to, he’d foolishly trusted. Now he was paying the price for that foolishness.

“Well, well, well, what have we here?”

Thanatos jerked against the chain, rattling it as shock and shame ran through him. Gods, it would have to be _him_ , would it?

“Looks like the noble King Sisyphus got one over on you.”

“Ares.” Thanatos managed to lift his head enough to look the armored god of war in the eye.

Ares strode up to Thanatos, smirking down at him. “This is a good look on you, Thanatos.”

Thanatos glared at him. “We both know why you’re here, Ares. Free me.”

“Perhaps.” Ares stood, looking down at the chained god of death for a long moment.

Thanatos clenched his teeth, feeling shame writhe in him, but anger twining with it. “Your wars amount to nothing without me, war god. Release me.”

“Oh, eventually. It is true that the inability to win on the battlefield without death is an annoyance. Yet seeing you here, like this is…interesting.” Ares pulled off his helmet, his lips twisting in a smirk, and Thanatos saw a sadistic light in his eyes.

“Yes, yes, everyone on Olympus loathes me, I know. Now let me go.”

“No.”

“What?”

“No. No to the loathing, for in fact I quite admire you, and also no to releasing you. Oh, eventually, I suppose. Or perhaps I’ll go tell a few other gods you’re down here, and let somebody else do it. I’m sure they’ll all find the sight of you in chains amusing.”

“Ares… If you have a point, get to it,” growled Thanatos, pushing down the fear he felt at the thought of all Olympus seeing him like this. That they hated and feared him he well knew. Having them scorn and mock him as well would be too much.

“I’ll free you if you make it worth my while.” That smile was still on Ares’ lips, and Thanatos liked it less and less the more he saw of it.

“Ah. I see.” Thanatos narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “And just what is it you want from me?”

“Nothing difficult.” Ares’ smirk widened. “It’s only that seeing you like this, well…” He licked his lips, and Thanatos had a sudden sinking feeling he wasn’t going to like whatever he heard next. “I’ve often enjoyed the…services of a captive enemy,” said Ares. He brushed his hand down the front of his pteryges.

_Of course_ , thought Thanatos, wanting to sigh. “I am not a captive enemy,” he said, harshly.

“They say that death is the enemy of all men,” said Ares.

“Yes, but you’re a god.”

“Yet I am also a man.” Ares stroked over himself again, then reached behind him, unfastening the belt that held the skirt of pterygium around his waist. “And you are a captive.”

Thanatos couldn’t think of a rebuttal, so he only glared up at Ares. Ares put his hand under Thanatos’ chin, his hold possessive. “Will you pay my price, or shall I go and let some other member of my family—perhaps chatty Hermes?—find you? It might take a while, you know. Much as I am put out with the pause in my favorite war, there’s always an argument to be made for resting and re-grouping to better fight another day.”

“Ugh, fine,” spat Thanatos. Loathsome as what Ares wanted was, the idea of being here for days, weeks, even months was appalling, and not just because of the discomfort. He couldn’t possibly leave his duty undone that long.

“Very sensible of you,” said Ares, dropping Thanatos’ chin in order to pull up the hem of the chiton he wore beneath his armor. He pulled down his breeches as well, freeing a cock that was already half-erect.

Thanatos couldn’t keep a sneer of distaste from his face, but of course he also couldn’t move away or recoil as Ares stood in front of him, feet apart, hand stroking himself slowly. His other hand reached out and cupped Thanatos’ chin again. For just a moment Thanatos clenched his teeth together, wanting to spit and snarl defiance. He’d done nothing to deserve this, he shouldn’t have to debase himself so in order to be freed.

But he _had_ done something, hadn’t he? He’d trusted someone, been foolishly tricked, and now he would pay a further price for that foolishness. So with a feeling of something very like heartbreak deep within, he opened his mouth as Areas shifted his hips forward, and let the god of war use him.

The taste of Ares’ cock was, admittedly, not unpleasant. He wasn’t the first Thanatos had tasted thus. But the death god’s diversions were incredibly rare, given the fear and hatred most gods held for him, and the way mortals mostly seemed too other, too fragile, and too certainly the eventual victims of his own scythe for him to wish to grow attached to one.

So the salt-sweet musk of it was, if not a surprise, still not familiar either. He felt a shiver of reluctant arousal run down his spine as Ares slowly pushed his cock deeper into Thanatos’ mouth. The scent and taste of him were good, exciting, even. Thanatos shuddered, half-gagging as Ares’ cock pressed at the back of his throat. He instinctively tried to pull back, the chain rattling as he pulled it taut. Ares chuckled, and cupped the back of Thanatos’ head in one hand. “Do you know how to please a man, Thanatos? If you do, I suggest you try, else I’ll have to merely take my own pleasure, and I doubt you’d find that pleasant.”

Thanatos could hardly respond to that, but though he was half tempted to let Ares feel some teeth to let him know what he thought of all this, he instead tried to remember what he knew about how to go about it. He pressed his tongue along the underside of Ares’ cock, caressing it, and when Areas again pushed in deeper, he made a swallowing motion around the head of it, letting his throat squeeze it. Fortunately that worked as he recalled, and he didn’t gag this time.

He let his eyes close, trying to forget the unpleasant circumstances, concentrating on what he was doing. Ares rocked his hips slowly, thrusting shallowly into Thanatos’ mouth, seeming content to let him use tongue and lips and throat without demanding more.

As it went on and on, Thanatos lost himself in the simple action, the attempt to please, the taste and feel of the cock in his mouth. He found himself making a soft sound of pleasure with each stroke, almost forgetting who was doing this to him, and that he hadn’t wanted it in the first place.

After a time, though, Ares suddenly worked his fingers through Thanatos’ hair, grabbing a handful, holding his head tightly, and began thrusting more vigorously.

Thanatos shuddered, gagging at the unexpectedly forceful intrusion, but unable to do anything but endure. He was being choked repeatedly, hardly able to breathe, and was suddenly aware that chained and bound as he was—his power as much as his body—he could literally die if he were choked sufficiently. Terror thrilled through him, making him tremble. A muffled whimper escaped him. To his sudden shame he heard a dark, breathless chuckle from Ares, realized the war god was enjoying his fear.

That enjoyment was apparently sufficient to push him over the edge, though, for his cock suddenly pulsed in Thanatos’ mouth and the death god found himself choking on a flood of thick, bitter-salt seed. He struggled, giving up on cooperation, trying to turn his head away or pull back or do something; but between the chain at his throat and the tight grip Ares had on his hair, he couldn’t budge. So he was forced to accept the pulses of cum that pumped into his mouth.

He refused, though, to swallow it, that action at least he could choose, though said choice meant that cum was almost immediately drooling from his mouth and dripping from his chin. When the last drops of it were done, and Ares finally let go of his hair and stepped back, Thanatos turned his head and spat out the rest of it. He spat again, trying futilely to clear the taste of it from his mouth. Then Thanatos turned back to glare up at Ares, who was buckling his armored skirt back on. “I’ve paid your price, war god, now let me go.” That last was said with teeth bared in a snarl. Thanatos was filled with shame, directed entirely at himself, and rage, divided equally between himself and his distant cousin.

“Of course.” Ares drew his sword and, with a swift downward stroke, drove the point into the chain binding Thanatos’ neck. The link he struck shattered, and with a groan of relief Thanatos straightened, able to at least kneel fully upright at last.

Ares circled him swiftly and struck the chain on his hands down as well, then bent and after a moment’s pause, removed the shackles around his wrists. Thanatos groaned again, pulling his arms in front of him. To his shock, Ares reached around him, grabbed the length of chain still at his neck, and yanked Thanatos back against his chest. He bit the stunned death god’s ear lightly and said in a soft whisper, “You are skilled, Thanatos, and I very much enjoyed my payment. If you should find yourself wanting me to return the favor someday, you’ve only to ask.”

Before Thanatos could summon his scythe, turn on Ares, and cut him down, Ares vanished, leaving only an echo of laughter behind.

Thanatos rose slowly, stretching cramped and abused muscles, trying to shake off the conflicting emotions he felt. He could still taste a hint of Ares’ seed, and spat again, then wiped his face clean on the sleeve of his chiton. The taste wasn’t so easily banished, though. Finally he summoned his scythe, the symbol of his power, and took himself elsewhere to begin reaping souls once more. Even as he did, though, confused arousal laced with anger stayed with him. He wanted to direct each swing of the magical weapon at Ares’ neck, but he also couldn’t keep from thinking something else.

Ares had said “return the favor.” Did that mean the war god wanted Thanatos to use him as casually, as roughly, as Thanatos had just been used?

It was madness and it wouldn’t truly be vengeance, if Ares wanted it too.

But the thought lingered and wouldn’t leave. So even long after the last trace of bitter-salt vanished from his tongue, Thanatos couldn’t help but continue to remember what had been done to him, and to picture Ares, willing and compliant, or perhaps chained and fearful, at his own feet.

**Author's Note:**

> This now has a sequel, [Evening the Score](https://archiveofourown.org/works/29394126)
> 
> If you'd like to see me talk about writing, my works in progress, other creative endeavors, and my life in general, check out [my Dreamwidth blog](https://bladespark.dreamwidth.org/) or my [twitter](https://twitter.com/bladespark). I also now run a [multiship, adults-only, kink-friendly Hades server](https://discord.gg/zSUcd9s5rt). Feel free to join!


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